Beyond the Dark
by rave12
Summary: Percy Jackson led an orphaned life, supported by a mysterious trust fund that paid for his school fees. With a huge twist of events, he finds himself facing dangers that he had never seen before. Alongside his friends, is Percy Jackson ready for the future ahead?
1. Chapter 1

Why, hello there folks! It's rave12 here, with my first ever Fan fiction! Any constructive feedback is appreciated! Thanks for the help!

P.S I have a few new characters of my own! I don't own Percy Jackson. All rights to Mr Rick Riordan!

-x-

Chapter 1: Thoughts of the Primordial.

 _ **The universe.**_

Forever expanding, forever reaching out into the black void that lay beyond, _**She**_ saw it all.

 _ **She**_ saw the universe when it first began, and through the thousands of millennia, _**She**_ still watches.

Nyx.

Primordial goddess of the Night, Nyx stood at the beginning of creation.

The millions and millions of ever-expanding universes went through her thoughts no slower than a beam of light, but they do not interrupt her thoughts .Her mind resides longingly upon planet Earth, where her only mortal offspring resides.

 _Dear chaos._

 **Mortal offspring**. She rubbed her forehead in unease. If Erebus ever found out…

Despite her unease, she felt herself smile. She could sense him, his powers growing beyond a child's extent, and how he easily kept it under control.

The boy had potential.

" _ **NYX!**_ For Chaos's sake, I've been calling you for the 4th time! " Erebus roared.

She growled under her breath, but Erebus roared yet again " _ **I HEARD THAT!**_ ".

Nyx sighed and made her way to Erebus's room, preparing herself for yet another lecture on Erebus's universe dominating strategy.

As she made her way into the room, she said "Erebus I swear to all gods in existence, if this is another _**universe dominating lecture**_ I will…"

Erebus held up his hand, requesting silence. Nyx kept her mouth shut.

"Nyx, I promise you this isn't a universe dominating lecture. I feel that there are more important things to discuss." She raised her eyebrow.

"See, as a **loving** husband," he said, putting emphasis on the word. Nyx rolled her eyes. "I've been naturally keeping track of your movements. And I've been getting somewhat worried about the company my wife keeps."

"Say for example, _**that mortal you had an affair with 15 years ago.**_ " His tone dropped to a deathly snarl.

Nyx paled.

"See," Erebus continued, "I don't mind that you have another man, but you went out of your way and **ACTUALLY HAD A MORTAL OFFSPRING WITH HIM!"**.

Nyx flinched upon those last words as Erebus screamed them out.

He grabbed her by the neck, drawing her so close that their noses meet.

"If that," he sneered, _**"mortal**_ **_offspring_** causes any troubles to us what so ever…"

The castle that resided upon the void shook with lightning.

"Be ready to face the consequences."


	2. School

Hey there everyone! Hope you all liked the first chapter! Again, constructive criticism is welcome!

P.S: I don't own Percy Jackson, all right to Rick Riordan!

-X-

Chapter 2: School

Percy Jackson sat spinning his pen between his fingers, looking at the light gleam off the edge of the cheap plastic surface. He paid no attention to the other 49 children, who were _completely_ trashing the classroom.

Chairs and desks that students used were unoccupied, as their owners had abandoned them. The students stood upon the tables blasting rock music out of their phones, throwing random objects across the room. Percy was in Aaron's school, a school for the (ehem) "learning disabilities".

It is true, however, that Percy had problems learning. Born a victim of ADHD and Dyslexia, reading was a problem for Percy. All he could make out of supposed sentences were weird alien language. For example:

"The fox jumped over the fence."

"Feh xot pdemju vero eht cenef (?)"

Percy sighed. There was nothing to really look forward to throughout the day, except for mythology class. Even after school ended, he had no where to go, no where to call home.

Percy grew up an orphan, and never knew what his parents looked like.

However, there _**was**_ something Percy knew.

He wasn't normal.

Apart from his ADHD and dyslexia, he learned that he possesed something he could not quite understand, but something he put to good use.

Ever since Percy lived on the streets, he found sanctuary upon the darkness, as if there was a cooling voice telling him everything would be all right. However, one night, as Percy slept on the concrete pavement, a thug had appeared, and tried to rob him of the little things he had.

Afraid of losing everything, again, he had let out a guttural scream of rage as the thug ran away.

Percy had thought his eyes were playing tricks on him, but he saw the shadow of the lamp post change shape, and smacking the thug's shadow ontop of the head, which made the thug crumple onto the floor. As Percy jogged forwards to retrieve his items, he felt a pulling in his gut.

Ever since then, he felt as if the shadows protected him from the threats of the outside world, and kept him safe.


	3. The Crippled Swordsman

Hey hey! It's your favorite basement dweller rave12! So I've been getting a somewhat quiet reception from my story, which i can only assume is because of my personal characters. So, I've modified the story, hopefully to your liking, revolving around our favorite demigod Percy Jackson

P.S: all the yada-yada I don't own Percy Jackson, and all constructive feedback welcome!

-X-

Chapter 3: Mythology

Percy was indeed ADHD, and dyslexic, but if there was one subject they could tolerate, it would be Mythology.

Not just any mythology, mind you.

 _ **Greek**_ mythology.

Hell, the teacher, Mr O' Conner, was in a _wheelchair_ but somehow he made his lessons more interesting than all the other teachers combined.

His lessons comprised of swordplay, yelling, acting, and a whole lot more of crazy stuff, which was right up Percy alley.

- **RING-**

The bell rang, bringing an end to Physics and sparing Percy's ears from any more of Mr. Schulz's robotic droning.

And right on cue, as Mr Schulz stepped out of the classroom, we could hear the motorized wheelchair Mr Connor rode in. Mr Connor wheeled into the classroom heaving 2 swords (which looked _wicked_ ) and 2 thick books.

"No need to greet an old man like me, sit down you fellas." He said as they all stood on cue to greet him, as we did with all teachers.

He smoothed the front of his coat, and looked up at us. "Now, straight to the point. You might notice that what I brought with me into class today…" His eyes gleamed.

"Swords! Yes, truly deadly but we won't be doing _deadly_ in my class today. These swords are made of wood, lightweight and easy to handle." He said. "The true, bravest heroes of the past in Greece used swords, unless you count Heracles, who strangled the Nemean lion to death with a club."

Then, lifting both swords, he said "Now, who wants to go first?"

They all gaped at Mr Connor. He _couldn't_ possibly think that they couldn't beat him, could he? Percy grinned. Multiple hands shot up among the classroom, and Mr Connor called out a tall, buff guy by the name of Andrew.

"Now, Andrew, a big strong man like you, do you think you can beat me?" Mr Connor challenged. A drew raised his eyebrows. "You kidding, old man? You're a cripple in a wheelchair, and you're asking me if I can beat you?" He scoffed. "Of course I can!"

Mr Connor smiled. He gestured towards one of the swords lying on the table. "Andrew, if you would." Andrew _sashayed_ -which made Zade and Carl gag- over to the table and snatched up the sword with the wooden blade.

Mr Connor, with a light push, pushed the teacher's table all the way to the side, making sufficient space for a duel.

"Now, rules apply, of course. Maiming is not allowed, but whoever touches the opponent with the blade first wins." Mr Connor stated.

Andrew scoffed, "You want me to go easy on you old man?" Mr Connor merely smiled and backed up, readying his sword in a defensive stance. "On my mark! 3, 2, 1…"

"Begin!"

Andrew, with no hesitation, rushed Mr Connor with his sword raised over his head and brought it down.

 _WHTACK!_

The sound of colliding wood rang across the classroom, as Mr Connor blocked the blade with his own, smiling.

"Come on now Andrew, surely you have more than that."

Andrew grit his teeth. Not wanting to be shamed by a cripple, he rang down heavy blows upon Mr Connor, which the later blocked with apparent ease.

"My turn now Andrew," he said, eyes gleaming. "Are you ready?"

Andrew panted, out of breath. "B-bring it, o-old man!"

Faster than the eye could follow, Mr Connor wielded the blade with apparent ease and slashed down on Andrew.

Before Andrew could even react, Mr Connor touched his chest with the wooden blade, and smiled.

"I win."

So, just like that, over 20 people tried to take on Mr Connor, the crippled swordsman, but no one could best him.

 **-RING-**

"Oh, already?" Mr Connor muttered. "Well then kids, I hope you all had fun today! Off to break now, go on!" and with that, he gathered his items and wheeled out of the classroom.


	4. Lunch and Monsters

Hey there everyone! I hope you all prefer this storyline instead of the other one with my personal characters! Do leave a few reviews telling me about what you think. I would love to know! Thanks! – rave

P.S: I don't own Percy Jackson. All rights to Mr. Rick Riordan!

-X-

Chapter 4: Lunch and Monsters

Percy sat alone in the cafeteria, eating the infamous "brain pizza"; a lump of dough topped with barely melted mozzarella that stuck together like neurons. Percy grimaced.

The only people he could tolerate within the school were the brother and sister: Bianca and Nico di Angelo.

Like him, the siblings were a quiet pair. He finally caught sight of them, and waved them over to his table. Nico, as usual, was shuffling a –or rather, _multiple_ \- decks of Mythomagic cards, muttering to himself, and Bianca was glancing around, as if someone were watching them.

Percy had been staring around the cafeteria for as long as he was there, which was to say,

Quite long.

Which was why his eye got caught onto the 3 figures flitting through the cafeteria. The others didn't seem to notice, but he saw them immediately. It seemed as if they were trying to blend in, which was to say that they _didn't belong_ _._

So, what were they doing here then?

At that moment, someone tapped his shoulder, making him jump.

He turned around to see Professor Dred glaring at him. Professor Dred had always, for some reason, detested Percy. To Professor Dred, everything Percy did was something against the school rules.

"What now, oh mighty Professor Dred? Wanna send me to detention for something I didn't do?" Percy grumbled.

Professor Dred glared at him, and at that split second, Percy swore- **swore** \- he saw Dred's eyes flash scarlet.

"Percy Jackson, you're in deep trouble. Follow me." He hissed through gritted teeth.

As he stalked towards the gym hall, Percy gave Bianca and Nico the "it's happening again I'll be right back" look and chased after Dred.

Percy found Dred standing in the dark room, with only a lamp to provide sufficient brightness within the vast hall.

" _Tell me, Jackson._ "

Percy's eyes bugged out. Dred's voice had suddenly turned for the "annoying teacher voice" to the "deadly demon that's going to kill you" voice.

" _Tell me, who is your godly parent? I have observed, as I have for many years, but I just cannot seem to understand. So, do me a favour and clear this mystery for me._ " "Dred" hissed.

"Uhh, you know, I'd appreciate it if you didn't, you know, hiss, and all. And uhh, I don't get all the 'Godly parent' talk. You drunk?" Percy asked.

Dred hissed, and this time the hiss seemed to peel off a layer of white mist off of his body to reveal…

 _ **What the actual fuck.**_

Standing before him, in the flesh, was a Manticore.

He heard all about them in Mr. Connor's lessons, about how the manticore was a creature of ancient times, with the body of a lion, head of a human with 3 rows of sharp teeth, and sharp tipped wings.

Which was exactly what Percy saw in front of him.

Except for the lion body part, all other things Percy saw seemed to fit the category of Manticore.

"Wha-" was all Percy managed to say before he gave his wings a flap, and stuck a thorn right into his forearm.

Percy felt as if a bucket of acid was poured onto his arm, and collapsed onto the floor, clutching his arm, wincing and groaning in pain.

" _If only I could have my ways with you…"_ Dred muttered. " _Regardless of your parentage, Jackson, the General seeks an audience with you, which means that I have to keep you alive."_

Percy tried his best to crawl away, but he knew it was hopeless. He needed someplace to hide, someplace to…

" _ **hide.**_ "

He looked around the gym hall, which was dark, except for the one lamp that lit up one small portion of the hall.

Percy rolled sideways, into the shadows, muttering a silent prayer to the shadows to help him out once more.

" _What are you doing, Jackson? You know you cannot run._ " Dred sneered.

Percy saw a tendril of a shadow creep up behind Dred.

"You know, Dred." Percy said, a smile playing on his lips. "You're right. You _can't_ run."

As Dred sneered yet again, the shadow raised itself above Dred's head.

As Percy had seen many times before, it brought itself down upon the Manticore's head, its unconscious body dropping to the floor.

Percy felt the usual tugging in his gut, and promptly collapsed. At this moment, the door of the gym hall burst open to reveal the 3 figures he had caught sight of in the cafeteria.

The first figure, a girl, equipped with a mace and shield, charged forward screaming, "DIE!" before stopping in her tracks and looking at the unconscious manticore.

The second figure, another girl, went up to the first, and grabbed her shoulder. Percy caught them looking at the manticore, then back at Percy.

The third figure, a male this time, went up to Percy. "Hey dude, you all right? What happened? How did you even defeat a manticore? " he asked.

Percy shook his head.

"Look, I know it's a lot to take in right now, but first I have to tell you." The male figure said.

"You grew up missing a parent, right?" he asked. " _Both_ parents…" Percy muttered. ""Uhm, alright, but here's the thing, one of your parents, is a god."

 **God.**

The word rang in Percy's head as he tried to wrap his mind around the fact.

"Wait, so…"

They were interrupted by a roar and crash in the cafeteria, to which the female's told the male, "Grover, we need to get out of here. NOW."

The male, Grover, nodded wearily. He grabbed my hand.

"Come on Kiddo. Let's bring you home."


	5. Lies and Trickery

Heya folks! Its rave12 here yet again with another chapter! I hope you all like this story line better! Will update as soon as I can, and all feedbacks are welcome! Oh, and also, I've set up a twitter account so I can keep you guys updated on the story's progress! /_rave12_

P.S: I don't own Percy Jackson! All rights to Rick Riordan.

-X-

Chapter 5: Lies and Trickery

As Grover grabbed Percy's hand, they followed the other 2 girls out of Aaron's. Stumbling on the front steps, they scrambled to stand on their feet before running down the street. Grover and Percy gave chase.

The girl with the shield and spear still had her weapons out, but passer-by's didn't give them a second look. Percy vaguely heard a roar and crunch of what he supposed was a trash can behind him, but Grover shook his shoulder. "Don't look back. They can sense you better if you sense them." He said darkly.

They continued their way running down the street, now alert of the presence of the monsters right on their tail. Percy and Grover saw the 2 girls in front stop in their tracks, and skidded to a stop right behind them.

"Thalia, Annabeth! Just keep running!" Grover panted, out of breath, but then both he and Percy saw what was ahead.

4 giant figures stood in their path, which Percy guessed were Cyclops, judging from the single eye in their forehead instead of the normal 2 eyes. He could make out the sweat forming on the back of the girls' necks. Just as they thought all hope was lost, a voice called out.

"In here! Hurry!"

Percy, Grover and the 2 girls looked to the left, where they saw a hooded figure in an alley, beckoning its hand towards the group. Without hesitation, Thalia and Annabeth sprinted into the dark alley, with Grover following right behind them, leaving Percy standing alone on the street.

The hooded figure beckoned its hand at Percy.

" _ **Hurry!**_ "

Percy hesitated, before following the other 3 into the dark alley.

He found the trio with their hands on their knees, panting and gasping for air. Thalia, the girl with the spear and shield, had already vanished them to gods know where. She looked up at the hooded figure, who had walked past them to face the wall at the end of the alley. "Whoever you are, thank you. You just saved our lives."

Even though Percy couldn't see the hooded figure, he could sense the stranger smiling underneath their hood.

"Don't thanks me yet, Demigods." A female voice came from the hooded figure, resonating within the enclosed alley.

As Percy's eyes adjusted to the darkness in the alley, he made out the rough shape of a pear, which was to say the woman was (pretty) fat.

The woman took of her hood, and looked back at them, which _immediately_ classified her as "not a human."

Instead of the usual eyes, she had slitted eyes like a snake and oh, that wasn't all.

"I'm _terribly_ sorry for all the trickery, demigods. I'm afraid the General has paid quite a fee," she hissed, revealing a reptilian tongue, "for _that_ demigod there." As she pointed at Percy.

"All right, snake lady," he growled, "Look here, I don't even _know_ who my parents are. Then, you lot come over and tell me that  one of my parents is a **god.** _ **Then,**_ you're now implying that there's someone called the General that wants me and you're trying to kidnap me."

"I don't know if this is a sick prank," he snapped, "but if it is you **better** stop it." He finished, putting emphasis on the word.

The fat snake lady merely smiled.

"I can see why the General wants you, Jackson. You claim you don't know who your godly parents are, but yet I can feel all this power rolling off of you. My, my…."

Thalia, Annabeth and Grover grabbed Percy and pushed him to the back.

"All right here, Echidna," was as far as Thalia got before Percy interrupted. "Wait, you mean Echidna as in those fuzzy little spiky creature that eat ants?"

Echidna hissed. "You insolent half-bloods! I am the Mother of Monsters, and yet you foolish mortals confuse me with an _anteater._ "

Thalia rolled her eyes. "Just shut up, we're trying to keep you alive right now."

Percy shut up.

Thalia smacked her bracelet, and her shield sprung to life. Upon looking at the shield, Echidna snarled and backed up.

Percy didn't understand why the fearsome anteater lady had backed up by looking at a shield, until Thalia's hand backed up to retrieve her mace, allowing Percy to get a full glimpse of the bronze shield.

Embedded within the bronze, right in the middle, was the head of a gorgon, which Percy could easily tell from the snake hair. However, looking at the shield gave Percy the creeps. He was reminded of his worst memories, but the longer he looked at the shield, he realized the fear was slowly creeping away. The fear wasn't made to last.

That seemed to be the case as Echidna regained her posture and smirked.

"Ah yes, the Aegis, with my sister's head embedded within. Although, this is a just a replica, is it not?" Echidna sneered.

Thalia did not waste time answering her question, but merely lunged at Echidna with her spear.

She maybe would've hit Echidna, if it wasn't for the huge lion dropping out of the sky.

The gigantic lion dropped out of seemingly nowhere, but when Percy got a closer look, he realized that it was _more_ than just lion.

It had a goat head popping out of its back, and a snake for a tail.

Percy decided that he had a sufficient amount of weird for today.

Thalia backed up into Annabeth, who shouted, "It's a Chimera!" waving her bronze dagger at the creature.

The lion-goat hybrid hissed in approval when it heard its name, and promptly spat a geyser of fire at them. As Thalia raised her shield to block the jet of fire, the Chimera took the opportunity and pounced.

The magic _spooooky_ shield didn't seem to faze the Chimera, as it grabbed Thalia and Annabeth and threw them at the wall at the end of the alley.

Percy heard the 2 unconscious girls fall to the ground behind him.

The last guy standing, Grover, looked nervously at the 2 creatures standing in front of him, and grinned nervously as he fumbled with what looked like reed pipes.

The Chimera smacked him on top the head and Grover crumpled like a sack of rocks.

Echidna smiled at Percy. "Now, Jackson, just you and me."

-X-

God damn that was quite the chapter! Longest I have written until now, already writing next chapter! -rave


	6. The First Battle

Sup Folks! Enjoy Chapter 6!

P.S: I don't own Percy Jackson! All rights to Mr Rick Riordan!

-X-

Chapter 6: Unknown

Percy backed up as Echidna and Chimera stalked up to him.

"Come here or I'll have to do it the hard way." She sneered.

When Percy made no move, she sighed. "Fine, the hard way then. Sonny, do it!" Percy was wrapping his mind around the fact that Echidna had just called the lion-goat hybrid "sonny", when the Chimera leapt.

He braced himself, thinking _**FUUUUC-**_ when he felt the all too familiar pulling in his gut. The feeling always filled him with dread, but not _**this**_ time. When he felt it, his heart leapt.

As he opened his eyes, he found himself face to face with the Chimera, until it flew to left, as if hit by an invisible force. When Percy looked down, just as he expected, he saw a long shadow creeping its way back into the wall.

Echidna hissed.

"You… ", she hissed. "You claim you know not of your godly parent, but somehow you managed to pull off your abilities. What was it you did? Psychic abilities, maybe?" Her eyes glinted.

Percy glanced around the alley, realizing that it was past noon, with the sun directly overhead.

Which meant that the alley was covered in shadows.

"You know, Echidna," Percy said, "I don't know who my godly parent is, but I do know one thing." Echidna's eyes shone with curiosity, and said "Oh? And what is that?"

"Shadows are my territory."

"And you're right in the middle of it."

This made Echidna look uneasily around her, and true enough the entire alley was bathed in shadows. However, she pulled off a laugh. "Please, you pathetic half-blood, you believe that you, an untrained demigod can best the Mother of Monsters?"

A smack on the head by a shadow of a shirt-hanging pole above Echidna's head answered her question.

Being in the shadows, in the dark, gave Percy a new strength he hadn't sought to take control of before. As he scooped up Thalia's spear that lay beside his feet, he wielded it with apparent ease.

Echidna, for the first time ever since the entered the alley, looked scared. She hissed and flung what looked like hair clips at Percy. Before they could even reach Percy, the brick wall's shadow stretched out and stopped the lethal hair accessories in mid-air.

Echidna mouthed out some words, but no sound came out.

"My turn." Percy grinned.

He took small steps at first, which eventually grew larger as he leapt at Echidna. He let his instincts take over, making use of the nervous energy he always had to speed up his attacks and avoiding the deadly manicure of Echidna.

He knew that his ADHD wasn't the only thing keeping him alive, but the shadows too. The shadows no longer attacked Echidna, but staying in the shadows kept Percy energized, to keep him alert for all of Echidna's beauty accessory attacks.

He slashed at Echidna's chest, like how Mr Connor had with Andrew, and she growled in pain as blood poured from her wound. She tried to stab Percy, and Percy would've been shish kebab if it weren't for his reflexes.

Ducking under that stab, he stabbed upwards with the spear and caught Echidna in the chin, and the spear went straight through her head, the end of the spear coming out from the top of her head.

Echidna made one last feeble attempt to grab Percy, but her eyes rolled up into her head and she dissolved into fine golden powder.

He heard a whimper behind him, and turned around to see Chimera backing off wearily from him, slowly decreasing in size until it was no bigger than the average Chihuahua. Meowing and bleating like a goat, it sprinted out into the open street.

It took about another 10 minutes for the other unconscious demigods to stir from their deep sleep, and when they woke up they found Percy juggling Thalia's spear, 2 rocks and a banana peel he found from a trash can.

They saw no sign of the Mother of Monsters except for the fine golden power that had yet to fly away. The 3 demigods gaped as Percy retold them the story about how he bead Echidna, but he left out the parts where he took control of the shadows.

Grover shook his head. "You, without training, took out a manticore, and the Mother of Monsters herself, along with the Chimera. You're not just any demigod, you're a born hero."

Percy shook his head, "I'm no hero. That was sheer luck."

This time, Annabeth spoke up. "As a demigod with your calibre of power, I doubt you're the child of just any god. I'd put bets that you're a child of the big three."

"Big three?" Percy was getting more and more confused.

Annabeth shook her head. "We're still not safe. We need to get you to camp." "Camp?" Percy asked. Thalia nodded.

"Camp Half-Blood."


	7. Safety at last

Hey there all! I really hope you all can leave a few reviews :D and uhh with that said, enjoy Chapter 7!

P.S: I don't own Percy Jackson. All rights to Rick Riordan!

-X-

Chapter 7: Safety at last

Percy, Grover, Annabeth and Thalia sprinted through the woods as fast as their legs would let them, with a swarm of monsters the size of an army right on their tail.

"HOW BADLY DO THEY WANT ME?!" Percy panted, out of breath.

"Judging from the amount of monsters behind us, pretty bad." Grover said. Then. Thalia shouted out, "CAMP! GET IN THE BORDERS!"

Percy craned his neck and true enough, he saw an arch labelled "Camp Half-blood".

He could make out a translucent layer of _something_ around the camp, and when he was almost there, he broke into a slide and slid past the barriers, into camp.

Thalia, Annabeth and Grover followed suit, running past the barriers before collapsing, gasping for air.

"Where are we?" Percy asked. Thalia grinned. "Welcome home, kiddo."

As the trio led Percy to what they called the "Big house", Percy was amazed by what he saw. He caught sight of stables, but instead of the usual horses, Unicorns- _ **unicorns-**_ And pegasi, winged horses, occupied them.

"Do you guys ride those?" Percy asked, with an eyebrow raised, gesturing at the Pegasi.

"Oh, not just the Pegasi. You haven't seen the Unicorns in battle yet.' Annabeth grinned. Percy shuddered a he imagined those sharp unicorn horns used as lethal weapons on the battlefield.

They arrived at the Big house, and Percy understood why it was called _big_ house.

It had 4 floors, and was painted baby-blue with a white trim. Being homeless ever since he was young, Percy had never felt the safety of home before. Stepping into the Big house, Percy looked around in awe.

He heard a distinct clip-clop of horse hooves, and the rustle of a curtain as a centaur, half-man, half horse, made its way into the room. "Ah, I see you all have succeeded in retrieving the demigod." Said the all too familiar sound. Percy's eyes bugged out, and looked at the Centaur's face, who was stroking his beard.

Percy was about to faint. It was _**Mr Connor.**_

Percy felt like he would keel over and die, not from all the deadly monsters outside, but for the sheer _**weirdness**_ of it all. First, his first teacher turned out to be a Manticore, _**a bloody manticore,**_ but wait, there's more! He is then told that one of his parents is a god, and then dragged off into a dark alley, where Echidna and Chimera ambushed them. **Now,** his favourite teacher is a _centaur._

Sure, why not?

"Mr Connor. Mr…" Percy gaped, opening his mouth but no words came out.

The old centaur smiled. "Hello there, Percy. I'm glad you made it back safely. Around here, I am known as Chiron, and I will be your mentor. "

Percy was trying to wrap his mind around the concepts.

Thalia, Annabeth and Grover reported the whole incident to Chiron. Chiron stroked his beard thoughtfully.

"Yes, I understand why the General would want to seek an audience with our friend Percy here," Chiron said. "Percy, are you really sure that you don't know who your godly parent may be?"

Percy shook his head.

"Yet, with _such_ power rolling off of you, it would certainly be logical you attract monsters by the likes of the Manticore and Echidna. And furthermore, taking them out singlehandedly…" The old centaur sighed to himself.

"I believe that with any chance, your godly parent might claim you tomorrow at the Campfire."

Percy help up his hands in the "woah, woah" gesture. "Wait, waaait a second." Percy said. "When you said 'godly parent', you mean as in uhh…"

Chiron smiled. "Greek gods, yes."

Despite himself, Percy felt his heart leap. But if one of his parents was a god, where was the other? "Chiron, I grew up an orphan. If one of my parents was a god, then could my other parent also be… you know…" he asked sheepishly.

Chiron shook his head, to Percy's dismay. "It is impossible for 2 gods to bear a mortal child."

"For now, you will have to spend the night in the Hermes cabin." Chiron announced grimly.

Thalia sighed. "Chiron, the Hermes cabin is already overflowing with unclaimed demigods. You can't just stuff him in there." Chiron rubbed his temples, as if he were suffering from a headache. "There is no other choice, Thalia. You know that."

Thalia sighed, yet again, and stalked off.

Chiron said, "I'll leave you 3 alone. Do some catching up, I'll see you soon." And he left.

Percy, Annabeth and Grover left the Big house, and started talking. "So, everyone here has a godly parent?" Percy asked, curious.

Annabeth and Grover nodded. "Although everyone here has a godly parent, not all have been claimed yet." Annabeth said, shaking her slightly. "What's claiming?" Percy asked.

This time, Grover replied. "It's when the gods officially recognize you as their child. It normally happens every Saturday, during evening."

However, despite all the excitement of being "half-a-god", Percy's mind wandered to his 2 friends at Aaron's.

He panicked. "Wait, wait, wait. If the monsters didn't get me, would they target my 2 friends?" He asked, sweat forming on the back of his neck.

To his surprise, Annabeth smiled. "Would your friends happen to be Bianca and Nico de Angelo, brother and sister?"

Percy raised his eyebrows. "And you know this because?"

"They're demigods, too." She answered in a matter-of-fact tone. Percy's panic grew even more. "Then why didn't we take them with us?"

Annabeth laughed. "Percy, you radiate more power than any other demigod I know, even more than Jacob. That naturally leads the monsters to you, you were in more danger than them. Not to worry," she added, smiling. "Another rescue group was sent to help them."

Percy let go of the growing ball of worry inside him, but Percy asked, yet again. "You mentioned a Jacob. Who's Jacob?"

This time, Annabeth sneered. "He's the son of Poseidon, one of the big three. And a really cocky dude, no one likes him."

She looked up at the skies, and said "It's getting dark, I think I better head back to my cabin. Your cabin," she said, pointing towards a worn and old looking cabin in the distance, "is that one there. Good night!"

Percy made his way to the cabin that Annabeth had pointed out, but as he walked, he noticed smoke billowing up into the skies, which came from the auditorium. Percy raised his eyebrows. _Didn't they say Campfire was tomorrow?_

He knew he shouldn't, but he made his way towards the auditorium.

There, he found the source of smoke. The campfire bit was dark and cold, but beside it lay a girl, tending to a separate fire.

After what happened today, Percy knew that the young girl was _not_ a young girl, but he approached her anyway.

The girl was facing the other direction, but even though Percy was careful not to make noise, the girl turned and smiled.

"Ah, Percy Jackson." The girl said, and in the voice of an 8-year old girl.

Percy raised his eyebrows. If he got a dollar every time he raised his eyebrows, he'd probably be rich. "After all that happened today," he said, "I know that you're not just an 8-year old girl."

The girl smiled. "Indeed, Percy Jackson. My name is Hestia, goddess of the Hearth."

Percy looked at her, and asked, "Uh, no offense, but if you're a goddess, why are you, uh, an 8-year old girl?"

Hestia smiled. "This form represents my state of mind. Unlike my brothers and sisters, I do no partake in their battles. I have no interest in violence."

She regarded Percy, albeit curiously. "Ah, a child of the shadows, yet not a child of my brother Hades. And of immense power as well." Percy looked at her, stunned, before trying to play it off. "Uhh, child of the shadows? I don't know what you're implying here. And I certainly don't have 'immense power'."

Hestia smiled. "As modest as I thought you would be, Percy Jackson." She waved her hand at the fire, which formed images. Percy saw, through the fire, how he had knocked out robbers that tried to rob him in the midst of the night. He saw how he knocked the Chimera out of the way, earlier today, and how he had stopped Echidna's deadly hairclips in mid-air.

"Percy Jackson, a child of the darkness, but yet, I sense a burning fire within you."

Percy took that as a compliment.

"I see many things, Percy Jackson. And I see that you have the choice." "The choice of what?" Percy asked, puzzled.

"The choice of the fate of human mankind." She said nonchalantly.

Before Percy could say anymore, Hestia smiled warmly at Percy. "Percy Jackson, I am Hestia, the goddess of the Hearth and Fire, and you are a child of the darkness. Yet I sense the burning fire within you, brighter than any other flames I have tended. Which is why, I will offer you this."

Percy raised his eyebrows, yet again.

"I offer you the chance to be my Champion. My first ever, in fact." Hestia smiled

"Uhh…" was all Percy could manage. What the heck was a _champion?_

Hestia seemed to understand his confusion. "I will take you under my wing, provide you with the powers of the Hearth."

She held out her hand. "So, what will it be Percy Jackson? Will you become my first ever Champion?" Percy looked at Hestia's hand.

Letting out a deep breath, Percy took it. Hestia smiled.

Coiling flames curled up his arm, stopping at his forearm where it seared a symbol on his forearm. Strangely, he felt no pain.

When the flames died, Percy looked at his new tattoo. The very top of the tattoo was what looked like a sharp-tipped, curved capital "U". The "U" shape lay upon what reminded Percy of the sticks of a pole vault pit. It looked something like this:

Percy looked at it in awe, as he felt warmth surge through him. "Percy, I must first warn you," Hestia said, and Percy noticed the use of his first name now, instead of his full name.

"The Hearth has both the power to heal…" she said, proving her point as she laid her hand on his arm, closing the wound from the manticore spike, "but it also has the power to hurt."

To prove her point, she snapped her fingers and the calm, comfortable fire suddenly shot up into the air, turning white hot.

Percy backed up instantly, but Hestia waved her hands again and the fire died down.

"Thank you…" Percy hesitated, "Lady Hestia."

Hestia smiled, shaking her head. "There is no need for formalities with me, my champion. Just Hestia will do."

He smiled. "Thank you, Hestia."

She smiled and waved her hand. In a flash of flames, she was gone.

Percy headed back to the Hermes cabin, shaking his head at the sheer weirdness of it all.


	8. Hunters

Hey there folks! It rave12 here with Chapter 8 of Beyond the Dark. I wouldn't have had the will power to write this far, but thanks to all your support, here I am! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

P.S: I don't own Percy Jackson, All rights to Mr Rick Riordan!

P.P.S: Does "update", as stated in the reviews mean continuing the story, or does it stand for something else? Would like to know. Thanks!

-X-

Chapter 8: The Hunters

The Hermes cabin wasn't all that bad. True, it looked worn and faded and all from the outside, but on the inside, it was much wider than it seemed from the outside, and pretty comfy too. After heading inside, Percy did as he was told as he head straight to the Cabin's Head Counsellors, Connor and Travis Stoll. The Stoll twins looked exactly the same, with curly brown hair that hung in their blue eyes. When they saw Percy, they smiled impishly, and tossed Percy a pillow and a blanket, pointing him over to the mattress where he could sleep.

Growing up living on the streets, Percy had never had the luxury of sleeping on a mattress before, and even though the lining of the mattress was torn, Percy laid down contentedly and gave a sigh of comfort. With all the swinging lights in the cabin, Percy's eyes were half closed within minutes, and in the next second they closed fully, bringing Percy into deep sleep.

Unfortunately, that meant dreams.

Ever since he was young, he never made sense of any of his dreams. They were weird, distorted and always creeped Percy out. Now, even within the safety of the magic barrier that surrounded camp, the dreams didn't get any less weird.

 _Two Cyclops dragged a boy by his feet, whom by the looks of it, was unconscious. The 2 cyclops threw him on the floor, supposedly in the middle of nowhere, until the giant figure was visible. The giant figure was unnaturally tall, and spoke with a voice the resonated across the room._

" _Who is this?" the figure snarled at the Cyclops, making them tremble in fear. "I told you to bring me Jackson, not whoever_ **this** is. _" One of the cyclops, the braver one, spoke up. "M…my lord, we thought that he would work, because we detect the smell of the sea on him." The General spat. "Pah! You Cyclops, always coming up with your own decisions! I will let you leave alive," he said, and when the Cyclops stood unmoving, he shouted "_ **NOW! BEFORE I CHANGE MY MIND!** _"_

 _His shout shook the whole dream, making Percy stumble. "Luke!" he snapped his fingers. A young man, no older than he was, hurried forward. Percy was surprised that this person, Luke, had an uncanny resemblance to Connor and Travis Stoll. "Yes, General? How can I help you?"_

 _The huge figure, the General, asked. "You have captured the goddess, yes?" Luke nodded his head proudly. "Indeed we have, General. With much difficulty." The General beckoned his hand "Bring her forward."_

 _This time, Luke snapped his fingers, and 2 figures stepped out of the gloom and pushed a woman onto her knees, who was bound is bronze shackles. The General gave the woman a grin. "It's been a long time, Artemis."_

 _The goddess, Artemis, spat at the General._

 _The General smiled. "It's good to see you too."_

 _This time, he addressed Luke. "She will do," the General said, gesturing to the hills behind him. "She will take the weight, unlike_ _ **this**_ _" he spat, "demigod here. He smells of sea, but weak. Chain him up, and perhaps his friends will come rescue him."_

 _Artemis opened her mouth to speak, but no words came out._

Percy woke to the sound of a hunting horn.

He bolted upright, sweating. He looked around, and realized that it was still night time, and everyone in the Hermes cabin was still asleep.

Standing up, he stretched and headed outside for some fresh air. He stepped down the stairs on the wooden porch, and took in a breath of fresh air. While stretching, Percy couldn't help but notice the new addition to his forearm; The Mark of Hestia, Goddess of the Hearth.

Percy sat one the wooden stairs of the Porch, and rubbed the mark.

Before he could even think, he was interrupted by what sounded like a woman's screeching. He looked up to see a flock of birds with woman's faces, giving out high pitched wails of delight, as they screamed "Yummy demigod for lucky Harpies!"

Percy threw up his hands to protect himself as the flying demon grandmother birds swooped his with razor sharp claws, ready to slice him into pieces.

He felt a tug in his gut.

He looked up, and saw a grandmother demon bird inches from his face, flapping its wings frantically, as if it were trying to escape the grasp of an invisible creature. Percy looked down, fearing the worst, and sure enough, there was a shadow that was elongated, wrapping itself around the neck of the Harpy's shadow.

He heard two more behind him, but before they could reach him, more shadows reached out of the dark.

The shadows were merciless, slicing through the Harpies without as second hesitation. Percy stood alone in the dark, covered in Harpy blood and feathers.

He could've gotten away with it, if it weren't for the girls.

He turned to the left, and saw a band of girls looking at him. The Hunting horn he heard earlier came from the hunters, judging from the horn the hung by the first girl's belt. They walked orderly in 2 lines.

The moment they saw Percy, they immediately raised bows, which seemed to be the weapon everyone was using.

The girl in the front raised her hand. "Hold your fire." She said, in a commanding tone. Percy noticed that sitting on top of her head was a silver circlet, something the other girls didn't have, and Percy assumed that she was the leader.

"If we are within camp, he should not be a threat." Her volcanic-black eyes scrutinized him. Percy's pitch black eyes did the same.

Another girl, the girl standing next to the leader, hissed. "Zoe, every male in this camp is a threat!"

Zoe shook her head. "Get to the cabin. Whatever happens in this camp is none of our business." And as the girls went off, he found himself locking eyes with Zoe, the leader. Her eyes snapped away quickly as she went towards her cabin.

Percy shook his head and went to the showers to clean himself up.


	9. The Missing Goddess

Helloooo there! Back again with Chapter 8! Enjoy!

P.S: I don't own Percy Jackson. All rights to Rick Riordan!

-X-

Chapter 8: The missing goddess

Percy woke up slightly later that day, owing to the fact that he had woke up at midnight. He glanced at the wall in the Hermes cabin, and Percy realized it was 11 am.

He got up, stretched, and headed outside. He noticed that everyone was doing battle training, and that he probably missed breakfast. However, all the training seized to a stop when a horn sounded from inside the camp. Everyone set down their weapons and headed off for one place – The Big House.

When he had first arrived, he only saw the campers, but this time, the girls in silver had joined. Percy knew that they were the girls he saw in the morning, but pretended not to know them, in case there were questions. The girls, thankfully, acted the same.

Chiron the Centaur, also Percy's mythology teacher, looked grim. When everyone was present, he nodded at Zoe, the leader of the hunters.

"The Hunters" she said, looking uneasy. "Are in camp today as our leader, the goddess Artemis," Zoe paused again, as if hesitating.

"Has gone missing."

This drew a huge amount of surprised gasps. Everyone knew Artemis was a goddess, and one of the most skilled fighters among the Olympians, and yet she had somehow gone missing.

Chiron raised his hand, and everyone quietened down. "Artemis is not the only one missing."

More surprised gasps filled the room.

"Yesterday, we sent 2 groups out of camp to retrieve demigods within Aaron's school. Although both teams made it back, the second team came back missing one person."

"Jacob Oakman, Son of Poseidon, has gone missing."

Instantly the entire room was filled with panicked shouting. Jacob was supposed to be the strongest one amongst them all, and had went missing too. Hearing all this, Percy recalled his dream.

" _ **It's been a long time, Artemis."**_

' _ **She will take the weight, unlike this" he spat, "demigod here. He smells of sea, but weak. Chain him up, and perhaps his friends will come rescue him."**_

"They were kidnapped." Percy blurted out, before he could stop himself. Almost at once, all eye turned on him, and Zoe snarled, nocking an arrow on her bow and aiming it at him.

"And how do you know _that,_ boy?"

"U-uhh, a dream?" Percy stuttered. Zoe narrowed her eyebrows. "You don't sound certain." She sneered.

"I'm certain, I'm certain!"

No one seemed surprised that Percy had gotten visions from his dreams, and Percy assumed that it was common amongst demigods.

Chiron gestured towards Percy. "Percy, what else did you see?"

"Uhh," Percy said, trying to recall the details of his dream. "There was a guy, Luke." At the mention of his name, the council exchanged dark looks. Percy didn't press them for details. "There was also another person, The General."

Percy noticed the change of expression on Zoe's face, which changed from calm to panic, before she recomposed herself, and her expression turned to a sneer.

This time, she drew a hunting knife and pointed it at Percy. She seemed awfully armed for a council meeting, he thought, but Zoe asked, "How do we know you speak the truth?", still pointing the knife at Percy.

Percy sat there, silent, wondering what he could do to gain the huntress's trust.

"Swear it by the River Styx, then we will know you speak the truth." Chiron offered. Percy raised his eyebrows. "I wear it by the uhh… River Styx that what I said was the truth." Percy said.

Zoe lowered her knife, but her glare did not die down.

She sat silent, before she said, "If our Lady has indeed been captured, then we must have a quest." Upon hearing the word "quest", all the campers roared in approval.

Chiron nodded grimly. "I'm afraid so. If we are to have a quest, then a visit to the oracle is a must. Zoe, if you may."

Zoe nodded, and headed upstairs into the attic. A few minutes later, a pale Zoe walked down the stairs, and sat down with a sigh.

Chiron gave Zoe a glance that said _go on._

She sighed and set her hands on top the ping pong table. She recited:

 _Five shall go west to the goddess in chains,_

 _One shall be lost in the land without rain,_

 _The bane of Olympus shows the trail,_

 _Campers and Hunters combined prevail,_

 _The Titan's curse must one withstand,"_

Here, Percy noticed that Zoe's hands clenched into fists, pausing, before continuing.

" _And one shall perish by a parent's hand."_

The room was quiet, until Chiron broke the silence.

"Well, that was the prophecy. Zoe, I believe that you must organize a team of 5, and head west. Who the members of the crew are, is your choice." Chiron said.

Zoe pondered for a moment. "I will bring 5 of the strongest huntresses and head west for our goddess."

This time, Connor Stoll spoke up. "Hey, hey, the prophecy said 'Campers and Hunters combined prevail', so doesn't that mean that the team should have _both_ campers and Hunters?"

Zoe grit her teeth. "It does not matter. Campers will only slow us down." Chiron raised his hand. "Zoe, I understand that you would feel more comfortable travelling with your fellow hunters, but it would be unwise to tempt fate. Many have tried, and the results are… " Chiron grimaced. "Miserable."

Percy spoke up. "3 huntresses and 2 campers." He blurted. All eyes turned onto him, yet again, and he continued.

"What? I feel it's more than fair." Percy said.

Zoe sighed. "I do not wish for my quest to be interfered with a _boy_ , but I have to admit it makes sense."

"For the Huntresses, I will bring Phoebe and Diana." Zoe said.

"For the Campers, I am willing to bring the Satyr, Grover." Grover clopped up and down happily.

"And I will bring Percy Jackson, if he accepts."

The room was immediately filled with angry outbursts, with all the campers feeling indignant that a new comer at the camp was going on a quest on his second day.

Zoe stabbed her knife into the table, making all the campers shut up.

"I s-" Zoe hesitated. "I sense that Percy Jackson is powerful, more powerful than any of you here."

Percy felt a sense of gratitude to Zoe for not revealing what she saw that night.

Everyone was looking expectantly at Percy, and Percy nodded. "I accept."


	10. Chapter 10

Hey folks.

It's rave12 here, and I sincerely apologize for the long absence of chapters.

Parents aren't very supportive of my writing, and are restricting me from posting up stories for god knows why.

Im moving out on my own very soon, so I might be getting back into the writing.

I'm really very sorry.

-rave


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